Spline-Shaped Inlet Channel for Uniform Battery Cooling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Secondary battery modules face heat-related issues that can lead to cell mismatch and reduced performance due to uneven temperature distribution across battery cells during charging and discharging.
Innovation Solution
The secondary battery module design includes a housing with a surface defining a spline shape, such as a Bézier curve, which creates cooling channels with uniform fluid flow, ensuring consistent temperature distribution across the module without the need for flow control baffles or vanes, allowing for efficient air cooling and minimizing packaging volume.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If conventional cooling channels are used in secondary battery modules, then cooling function is provided, but non-uniform temperature distribution occurs across battery cells
Solution Approach 1:
The inlet channel surface is designed with a spline-shaped curved surface that follows the contour of the battery cells. This curved geometry allows the cooling fluid to be distributed more uniformly across all cooling channels, eliminating the non-uniform temperature distribution that occurs with conventional straight or angular channel designs. The curvature enables the fluid to reach all cells equitably, preventing cell mismatch and improving reliability.
2Temperature
If flow control baffles and guiding vanes are added to achieve uniform cooling, then temperature distribution improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the need for complex flow control baffles and guiding vanes by extracting the essential cooling function and implementing it through a simplified spline-shaped inlet channel surface. This extraction eliminates unnecessary structural elements while maintaining effective uniform cooling across all battery cells, thereby reducing device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The spline-shaped inlet channel surface is designed to automatically distribute cooling fluid uniformly across all cooling channels through its geometric properties alone, without requiring additional active flow control mechanisms. The passive geometric design enables self-regulating uniform cooling, eliminating the need for complex mechanical flow control components.
3Temperature
If additional flow control components are installed, then cooling uniformity improves, but packaging volume increases
Solution Approach 1:
The inlet channel surface is merged with the housing structure, and the spline-shaped geometry is integrated directly into the existing cooling channel architecture. This merging eliminates the need for separate flow control components, maintaining compact packaging volume while achieving uniform cooling fluid distribution across all battery cells.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This design achieves uniform temperature distribution, reduces cell mismatch, and enhances the performance and longevity of secondary battery modules while being economical and versatile for various applications.
Implementation Method 1
a fluid flowable within each of the cooling channels and in thermal energy exchange relationship with each of the secondary battery cells
Implementation Method 2
The surface has a shape defined by a spline... configured for directing the fluid flow to each of the cooling channels
Data Source
AI summary
A secondary battery module includes a plurality of secondary battery cells each having a measureable temperature and each spaced apart from an adjacent one of the cells to define a cooling channel therebetween. The plurality of cells includes a first one of the cells having a measureable first temperature, and a terminal one of the cells having a measureable terminal temperature and separated from the first one of the cells by at least one other of the cells. The module includes a fluid flowable within each of the cooling channels and in thermal energy exchange relationship with each of the cells. The module includes a housing having a surface defining an inlet channel disposed in fluid flow communication with each of the cooling channels and configured for directing the fluid flow to each of the cooling channels. The surface has a shape defined by a spline.